Sleepovers
by N.C. Stormeye
Summary: Can an illfated sleepover begin stirrings of romance? NxM


**Sleepovers**

**A Gakuen Alice Fic By MB**

**DISCLAIMER: **If I owned Gakuen Alice, then I would establish a whole arc on Hotaru, owing to the fact that I think of her as an evil genius.

**Authoress' notes: **Inspired by the last chapter of the fanfic **_Kiss by the book_ **by **shironeko-pyon**, I decided to write a story on an ill-fated sleepover. This is only the beginning hints of a romance though…so deal with it.

* * *

The Alice Academy during the rainy season was not a beautiful place. Perpetually gray skies and soggy ground detracted from the campus' beauty. But even during the rains, students still took their leisure, especially in the ever-popular Central Town, a shopping paradise.

Mikan Sakura was one of these intrepid students who ventured out in the rain to frequent her favourite Central Town café. It was a light rain when she ventured out, with a slight nip in the air, so she thought she would be fine. Unfortunately, that light rain soon became a downpour, with gale-force winds.

Mikan struggled through the storm, her umbrella already turned inside-out and useless. Since Hotaru was living in her laboratory, no one could inexplicably save her with a nifty gadget, and Mikan was on her own. Most of the students, those blessed with the knowledge that light showers this time of year often became downpours, were already safely inside their dorms. That left Mikan struggling alone.

"WHY IS IT ALWAYS ME!" Mikan shouted. She dropped her umbrella and attempted to run through the gale. The winds were too strong, pushing at her tiny frame. One particularly violent gaze knocked her off of her feet and onto the ground. Mikan tried to get up, but slipped again. She gave a screech of frustration, and with her last ounce of strength, got up and began to walk.

---000ooo000ooo000---

Natsume Hyuuga was walking through the empty corridors of the Alice Academy main campus. The relative quiet was conductive to his thoughts. He had noticed the nip in the air and hat vetoed risking it to go to his sakura tree. Instead he went to the library and spent his time there until it closed.

Now, as he was walking through the corridors, Natsume let his gaze wander to the window. He noted the lone figure struggling to rush to the building. _Stupid little girl_, he thought disparagingly, as he rolled his eyes and scowled. Only a girl like her would be dumb enough to attempt to brave the harsh weather just for a cup of cocoa. But he felt a sliver of sympathy for her.

_What in the…what do you mean I feel sympathy for her?_

I'm the author. I say you feel sympathy, you feel sympathy. Besides, you're supposed to care, you know. You're supposed to be considerate, just standoffish. Now where was I? Oh yes…

Natsume ventured outside, mentally kicking himself with the realization of what he was doing. At just the right moment, Mikan came stumbling through the gale. A gust of wind blew her straight into him.

---000ooo000ooo000---

_Ow…what did I hit…_Mikan rubbed her aching head and groaned audibly, _oh well, at least it's a bit soft. _She looked up, then blanched at what "soft" item she had bumped in to.

"Watch where you're going, polka-dots." Natsume said gruffly, giving Mikan the full blast of his death stare.

"Pervert!" Mikan screeched as she staggered past Natsume and into the school. She stared at her mud-and-rain-covered uniform and let out a growl of annoyance. Natsume watched in amusement as Mikan proceeded to try and wring rainwater out of her pigtails.

"You got mud on my shirt, stupid." Natsume remarked nonchalantly. He didn't particularly care. The Academy pampered those they needed. He could have it laundered and back in his closet the next day. But it served his purpose of annoying the naïve female in front of him.

"So what! It's not my fault I bumped into you! Why were you outside anyway!" Mikan retorted angrily.

"I should be asking _you_ the same question, little girl." Natsume smirked, as he stymied the nullification Alice-wielder's further retorts. Mikan turned red with embarrassment and rage, and she started to stomp away when…

"OH NO!" Mikan screeched as she patted her pockets and thoroughly searched her items of clothing, drenched as they were.

"What now Polka Dots?" Natsume said boredly.

"The name is _Mikan_ and I LOST MY KEYS!" she screeched in frustration.

"So?"

"So I can't get into my room and I'll have to sleep outside my dorm again!" Mikan whined. _Again?_ Natsume thought disdainfully, _so she's forgotten her keys more than once? Idiot._

"Stop your whining, you can always ask one of your friends to help you, stupid." Natsume said gruffly, rolling his eyes.

"But Hotaru is at her lab, and I don't know anyone else's dorm room!" Mikan whined even loudly. She then proceeded, rather noisily, to bemoan her fate.

Finally, in a mixture of exasperation, annoyance, and maybe concern ('snicker, snicker'), Natsume made a very surprising offer.

"You can sleep in my room, stupid. Now quit your yapping."

---000ooo000ooo000---

Mikan was stunned. Her eyes boggled as she stood there and STAAAAARRED at the normally-indifferent black-cat's face. The silence she left was golden, and Natsume basked in it for awhile.

But the silence would not last for long.

"WHAAAAAT!" Mikan exclaimed.

"I said, stupid, that you could spend the night in my room. What, are you deaf as well as ugly?" Natsume said gruffly, barely believing himself.

"You…you…you really mean it Natsume?" Mikan said, her eyes googly with thankfulness.

"Yeah now stop making that face! You look uglier than ever Polka-Dots!"

"The name is MIKAN! PERVERT!"

"Hey watch it, or I just might change my mind!" _That shut her up…_Natsume said, and smirked.

---000ooo000ooo000---

Night was deepening as the duo came to the huge, fantastically ornate doors of the black cat's lair. Mikan gazed in awe at the intricate woodwork. Natsume rolled his eyes at the girl's awed expression. He simply turned the knob and walked inside, flipping the light switch as he went.

Mikan was shocked to see the interior of the room. The door was simply a hint of what was inside. High, arching ceilings and a rich four-poster, king-size bed with a huge canopy of black silk. A huge French window that seemed out of a fairytale, and a window seat that looked terribly tempting with its soft cushions. A comfortable sofa set and (laughingly) a fireplace was next to the window. There was a huge armoire that stood next to the arching doorway of the bathroom and adjoining dressing room. A huge desk with a top-of-the-line laptop was next to a huge bookshelf. There was even a small alcove that acted as a mini-pantry.

"Wow…your room is so cool Natsume!" Mikan said in awe.

"Whatever." Natsume said nonchalantly. He strode to a huge chest of drawers next to his bed and appeared to look for something. Minutes later, Mikan found a soft, white cotton nightshirt thrown at her face, along with a pair of boxers.

"What am I supposed to do with these?" Mikan asked timidly.

"I don't want mud on my bed, stupid." Natsume said nonchalantly. Mikan mumbled her astonished 'thank-you's', and was met with a grunt in reply.

"Hey Polka-dots, don't get mud on my stuff." Natsume said indifferently as he jerked his thumb at the bathroom door, a signal for Mikan to go inside and change. Mikan walked to the door and stepped inside.

As soon as she was out of sight, Natsume shook his head, then proceeded to strip himself and change. Unfortunately, he was only half-finished changing when Mikan stepped out of the bathroom, much to her shock.

_Oh my gosh…oh my gosh I saw Natsume half-naked…he's gonna kill me!_ Mikan thought as she blushed. Natsume pulled his shirt over his head and rolled his eyes.

"Like what you see, huh ugly?" Natsume smirked.

"…I…uh…NO! EEW! THAT IS SO GROSS NATSUME! YOU PERVERT!" Mikan exclaimed.

"_I'm_ the pervert? Who's the one staring?" Natsume retorted, effectively silencing Mikan's line of complaint. He smirked smugly and was about to go to bed when…

"Natsume…where will I sleep?" Mikan said timidly.

_Oh jeez…I forgot about that. The sofa's too thin so…_ "You can sleep on the window seat." Natsume said, throwing Mikan a blanket. Mikan caught it with a faint, yawned 'Thank you.'

"Don't get too comfortable polka-dots, I wouldn't want drool on my cushions." Natsume said by way of reply. But Mikan was already fast asleep.

---000ooo000ooo000---

In the middle of the night, Natsume awoke, gasping softly, from one of his troubled nightmares. He rubbed his eyes until his vision cleared. He was about to go to sleep when he noticed the figure curled up on his window seat.

_She's shivering…cold?_ Natsume thought to himself as he got up. He walked over to the window seat. He started to shiver too, slightly. Then he noticed that there was a gap in the window.

_Oh crap…I should have remembered…that's rusted stuck! But where will she…oh god._ Natsume rolled his eyes and proceeded to try and pick up the sleeping girl. _Damn she's heavy…_he said as he hauled her to the bed.

Finally he laid her on the bed and got to the other side. Pulling the blankets to him he decided to relax. He was going to go back to sleep when he heard moans, soft, light moans. Natsume turned to face Mikan's form, and noticed she was still shivering, and sniffling too. On closer inspection, she was crying, and still very cold.

_She cries in her sleep? Oh come on…and she's still cold?._ Natsume thought. Grudgingly he slowly eased himself next to her, holding her close and using his alice to provide warmth for the both of them. Slowly he noted that Mikan began to relax and burrow closer, igniting feelings that made Natsume blush slightly. But eventually the rain's rhythmic patter became too much for him he too began to relax. Within minutes, the gentle beating of the rain on the window had lulled him to sleep.

---000ooo000ooo000---

He woke before she did.

Natsume awoke to Mikan crushed against his chest. In his sleep, he had protectively wrapped both arms around her. In his surprise, he quickly (though not quick enough to wake her) got up. He shook himself and rubbed his eyes until his vision began to clear.

"Stupid girl…asleep this late." Natsume mumbled to himself. He stretched and went to the bathroom to change. But before he turned his back on his bed and its occupant, a murmur caught his ear.

"Thank you…Natsume-kun…" Mikan sighed in her sleep. And for a brief moment, Natsume smiled.

**

* * *

End Notes: NYAH! I know…I stole (I think) part of a concept…but I think it's cute and besides, I didn't use ALL of it! I changed the scenario around a bit! Anyway I like it, so there!**

_With Love,_

_MB_


End file.
